Article
Grassland productivity limited by multiple nutrients
Nature Plants
(2015)
Abstract
Terrestrial ecosystem productivity is widely accepted to be nutrient limited. Although nitrogen (N) is deemed a key determinant of aboveground net primary production (ANPP), the prevalence of co-limitation by N and phosphorus (P) is increasingly recognized. However, the extent to which terrestrial productivity is co-limited by nutrients other than N and P has remained unclear. Here, we report results from a standardized factorial nutrient addition experiment, in which we added N, P and potassium (K) combined with a selection of micronutrients (K+μ), alone or in concert, to 42 grassland sites spanning five continents, and monitored ANPP. Nutrient availability limited productivity at 31 of the 42 grassland sites. And pairwise combinations of N, P, and K+μ co-limited ANPP at 29 of the sites. Nitrogen limitation peaked in cool, high latitude sites.
Disciplines
Publication Date
2015
DOI
doi:10.1038/nplants.2015.80
Citation Information
Peter B. Adler. "Grassland productivity limited by multiple nutrients" Nature Plants Vol. 1 Iss. article 15080 (2015) Available at: http://works.bepress.com/peter_adler/125/